Recieving over the air
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New member Username: Imokureok4Plymouth, Ma Usa Post Number: 1 Registered: Dec-04 | Ok right now i have regular satellite hooked up to my 50" samsung because i was going to wait for direct tv to have more HDTV channels available but then i realized the picture looks absolutley terrible with the reciever and dish i have now so i want to upgrade to satellite hdtv thru direct tv now I know i need a new hdtv satellite reciever and a new dish but what do i need to recieve over the air broadcasts??? |
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Anonymous | In certain areas, the satellite company would give you an outdoor antenna to receive the HD OTA boardcast. |
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Bronze Member Username: Kevin_eastmanPost Number: 14 Registered: Aug-04 | 1. Make sure you can recieve (are you close enough) a OTA signal. Being in MA. I'm sure you can. You can check for local programming, and distances at AntennaWeb.org. 2. Determine what size and type antenna you need. Unfortunately there will be as many opinions on this as what the best beer in america is. I bought the biggest I could find to take out any of the guess work. I believe this site will also give you compass orientations to help you "point" your antenna if needed. 3. Determine how you will connect you hd reciever to your tv. Component or DVI. ( ?? does you TV have DVI capability??) If you choose DVI make sure you have it when they install your new dish. I was told that the DVI cable would be provided by 3 seperate dish rep's but it wasn't. The installer only had component with him. 4. And finally, on a personal note, get used to not watching anything non-hd. With better interconnects and a hd picture to compare it to, the regular digital programming picture is substandard at best. |
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New member Username: Imokureok4Plymouth, Ma Usa Post Number: 2 Registered: Dec-04 | Ok i went to antennaweb.org (a little confusing) but anyway if i have a new hdtv satellite reciever do i also need the reciever to have over the air hdtv or just an antenna |
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Scott Smetana Unregistered guest | Andrew - you just need the Antenna. It will connect through for HD receiver. FYI - Dish Network is cheaper in many ways than DirectTV. They're even offering free 'piggy-back' receivers so that you don't have to spend an extra $5/month for every TV in your house. |
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Unregistered guest | Finally some info on over-the-air antennas for HDTV. I don't want to subscribe to cable, satellite, or anything else. Is it true that I can get local channels (in Brooklyn, NY) by just getting a roof antenna and an HDTV receiver? Any advice on where to buy one? Can I install it myself or is there a company that will do it? |
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toxicchill Unregistered guest | John, I live in brooklyn as well and yes, you can receive the local channels w/ an OTA. I think most OTA digital antenna will do. I got mine from antennasdirect.com. You can try radio shack. The only channel I don't get in HD is WB ( cuz my antenna does not pull in VHF signals) and UPN, as I don't think they broadcast in digital. Good luck. |
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toxicchill Unregistered guest | it's relatively easy to install one. goto antennaweb.org and see where you have to point the antenna. make sure your cable run (RG6) isn't too long. anything less than 50ft should be ok. anything more, you will probably need an amp. |
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Anonymous | Zenith Silver sensor @ around 35 dollars used to be at Best Buy -works pretty good in most situtions -right near a window near the tv A 3 dollars radio shack uhf can works - but not as good as the Silver Sensor if you need a Samsung OTA box - on ebay they are available at rock bottom these days |
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John Foster Unregistered guest | Thanks for advice, toxicchill and Anonymous. My run is more than 50 ft, so I'll get an amplified antenna and look for the Samsun box on ebay. I assume that's the receiver? |
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New member Username: Thomas_friederStaten Island, New York USA Post Number: 1 Registered: Dec-04 | I'm over in staten island trying to do the same thing (and may be stuck going with satellite as i've had minimal results over the air) but just be choosy with your antenna choice... the hdtv signals are not sent from one central location as with regular broadcast signals from the empire state bldg...currently i'm looking at the winegard ss-2000 if i can get a good price...supposedly reflected signals affect HDTV signals more...also hdtv are send via both uhf and vhf freq. ....good luck |
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BARRY BONDS Unregistered guest | My dad needs help? can anyone give advice the question is HOW CAN I RECEIVE THE OVER-THE-AIR HDTV SIGNAL? The sub question is WHAT KIND OF ATTENNA DO I NEED INSIDE OR OUTSIDE? |
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BARRY BONDS Unregistered guest | My dad needs help? can anyone give advice the question is HOW CAN I RECEIVE THE OVER-THE-AIR HDTV SIGNAL? The sub question is WHAT KIND OF ATTENNA DO I NEED INSIDE OR OUTSIDE? |
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New member Username: Ben1dbPost Number: 4 Registered: Jan-05 | I just hooked up a 20 year old antenna in my attic and it works great. It will depend how far away you are from the towers. Tell him to go to www.antennaweb.org and plug in his address and it will tell you how far you are and where to point the antenna. Go to you local Radio Shack and get one thats good enough to cover the distance. |
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New member Username: Thomas_friederStaten Island, New York USA Post Number: 6 Registered: Dec-04 | radio shack only has limited indoor antennas so you better be close by...try ebay or the winegard antenna site (some ebay sites are offering smaller new antenna makes but I have not tried them)...Winegard have the most variety of UHF antennas (since most HDTV is broadcast via UHF)...I had bad experiences with Terk (their top of the line product did not even come close to some lower priced winegard antenna's in reception at my place...good luck |
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Unregistered guest | I have a winegard antenna from direct tv it looks like a wing. Is that a good antenna? Is it multi directional? What is the best multi directional out there for the price? My fox station gos in and out and no matter wich way I point it the signal strength is at 80% or less. Is there an antenna that I can get that will be good for all directions? |
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Unregistered guest | most omindirectional antennas sacrifice signal strength for their all-direction ability .... you should visit the antennaweb site or just google hdtv antenna sites..there's a few out there that review antennas... a few key factors in getting off the air reception... distance...most hd channels are UHF, which does not travel as far, you must a clear line of site ...you might try an amplified model ...there's also some custom designed HD 'tennas out there with built-in rotators that might be better suited for you...from your description, it sounds like you have a winegard model that is older and geared for just off the air signals, not strictly HD, most strictly HD antennas are a yagi or square design |
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Threewide Unregistered guest | I need help getting OTA stations in the Chicago area. I have a 46" HD Ready Sony TV & 811 HD Dish Network receiver. The only local channel I current get is CBS, and that is only because I am receiving the NY & LA signal (included with local channel package). I've purchased a tv top hd antenna (terk hdtvi) which is supposed to be good for 35 miles, and there is no difference. I'm 10 from most signals. What am I missing? Is there a better antenna? Thanks, Threewide |
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Unregistered guest | You cannot always use the distance factor in determing what antenna you can use... have you gone to the antennaweb site and seen what your signal range is? In NY not all HD/digital signals are transmitted from the same place/tower as the old regular analog are, that may be the case in your neck of the woods as well. As a secondary comment, half the HDTV sites basicly tell you to blow off any indoor antennas other than large attic type mounts, so that may also be your problem...last comment, also it may have been better to go with directv in this case...I could not get a single straight answer from Dish in when they would be offering any more HD network feeds even later this year... directv are currently offering 4 of the HD broadcast nets via the satellites CBS/NBC/ABC/FOX adn supposedly by Summer will have the full package after 2 more satellites are placed in orbit...and no I do not work for directv (smile)...in fact i had Dish until 2 years ago, tried to give TW cable one last shot and went back to Sat. 2 months ago |
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Unregistered guest | apologies for some of the "typos" above...cordless keyboard is losing signals and i should have proofed it better |
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xvxvxvx Unregistered guest | Threewide, Go to http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx Click on Choose an Antenna, enter all the required information and a better antenna than the TERK will be recommended to suit your needs. xvxvxvx |
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alex aviles Unregistered guest | can i use my winegard antena for local chanels only (air signal) and i can conect directly to my tv |
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fx Unregistered guest | Alex, Hook the antenna up and see. It should work depending on the distance from the towers and any obstructions. xvxvxvx |
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New member Username: SpeedracerPost Number: 4 Registered: Apr-05 | alex. you need a tuner to convert the hd signals for over-the-air hd. The antenna alone will not show hd on your tv. any antenna will work. I was using a 20 yr. old antenna hooked up to a samsung hd tuner and signals were fine. winegard is a good brand. |
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Unregistered guest | Clarification with HD reception.... I'm getting a TV that has a built in HD tuner. I live in an apt. complex that has DirecTV and feeds it out to it's residents (with subscription of course). Needless to say, with HD already built in to the TV will I need to upgrade to an DirecTV HD receiver to get the broadcasts or can I just buy an antenna to pick up the local HD broadcasts? |
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billllllyhilllllly2 Unregistered guest | You only need the small UHF antenna to pick up the HD broadcasts. I am 45 miles from Chicago and can pick up about 12 broadcast affiliates in HD/Digital. |
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New member Username: The411Post Number: 1 Registered: Jun-05 | I'm wondering why over the air antenna systems have advanced so little .After all , we can send people into outer space . It seems we are still stuck with the old Yagi style antennas . Anyone have any experience with the Axium Spilateral antennas . I would like to use a rotor and convert an old dish to pick up over the air . Any one ever seen any instructions on doing this ? I Think we should all be able to get good reception , without being forced to have an antenna as big as a train . The cable companies must be keeping the secret under wraps. |
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fx Unregistered guest | It has nothing to do with the cable companies. It is a fact of wave propagation and antenna theory. The best reception from an antenna is a factor of the frequency wavelength or commonly 1/4 wavelength antenna design. This is why UHF antennas are so much smaller than VHF antennas. As the frequency increases the wavelength decreases so the required size to construct a 1/4 wavelength antenna decreases. As long as you want to get data from VHF stations the best antenna will be quite large depending on your distance from the transmission towers. If You are close rabbit ears still work fine. xvxvxvx |
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engine giver Unregistered guest | fx knows his stuff. Now take that and smoke it in your piece pipe. |
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south florida guy Unregistered guest | Can someone suggest a good preamp for hd???? To get OTA; i got a XIUM antenna, (looks like a mini satelite dish); in conjunction with a 12 DB VHF amplifier. I get fox hd, abc hd, nbc hd. wb digital and all thier analogue/digital counterparts. anyway, no cbs or pbs hd. at night the signals are near flawless. during the day; until after sunset; almost nothing comes in. i beieve i may be using all reflected hd signals.due to poor location. anyway to my question/problem. ive got mixed data on the best kind of preamp to get; i was told a broadband rf preamp was best; i got the ramsey one. it blocks all signals; am/fm/uhf/vhf. why doesnt it work? or they also said to get one that blocks uhf cause it can overload the reciever. any help would be great. |
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New member Username: Nr4pPost Number: 8 Registered: May-05 | Where in S. Florida are you? Also, most HD channels are really UHF. Miami CBS and WPB CBS are on UHF. So your inline VHF preamp is actually attenuating (blocking) UHF from coming thru. First thing, take out the preamp and see what happens. Have your TV or box re-scan all channels after you do that and then look for them. If you need a preamp, get a VHF/UHF combined preamp, preferably one that has an FM trap so you don't have FM stations causing interference. |
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Unregistered guest | i'm a student at university of johunnesburg in South Africa,i want to know how antenas can be improved in low network areas in the rural areas,in a very cheap way |
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Mike22 Unregistered guest | I have a Winegard Square Antenna which works well for HDTV off air channels through my directv unit. Unfortunately I have two stations (8/10) where the tower is within 2 miles but in the opposite direction of the way the antenna needs to aim for my other 5 stations. I am trying to set up a 2nd antenna to get those stations. I use diplexers in order to use the current satellite cable wiring. I am using a splitter to input both these antenna's into the diplexer... both antenna's work alone, but the smaller antenna will not work when attached to the splitter. I think the wineguard antenna is blocking the signal. I only have one antenna input into my Hughes Directv Tivo Unit and I want all stations off air working for tivo at all times. Any idea's what to do? |
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New member Username: ToolmakerProvidence, RI Post Number: 4 Registered: Sep-05 | I have a UHF multi-directional (the DB2) sold by antennasdirect.com, for $39, and it is great. It is somewhat directional, but will pull in stations from all directions, and has a high gain of 11.4 dB with no amplification. I am pulling in 6 HD stations that are 40 miles away, and I'm recieving a signal strength of 7-8 on those stations. My TV rates signal strength 0-10, so I believe this antenna should be good up to around 60 miles. The next model up, the DB4 for $59, probably to 100 miles. Radio Shack sells a "combiner" which is similar to a splitter, but which supposedly works in reverse. I might give one of those a try. Hope this helps. |
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Anonymous | How senstitive are some of these HD antenna's? I got my winegard from DirectTV (in July) and they state that it won't work because of a tree is in my direct path - otherwise there aren't a lot of trees or other structures to block the signal. However, I know someone that connected a Terk, and his house is surrounded by trees, yet he has no problem picking up a HD signal. I find it hard to believe that an "air" antenna can't pick up a signal around a tree - especially when they sell HD antenna's for IN your house. |
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Bronze Member Username: ToolmakerProvidence, RI Post Number: 12 Registered: Sep-05 | You're right... you don't need a direct path with an over-the-air HD Antenna, as you do with a satelite dish. My antenna is mounted about 3 feet above my roof peak (20 ft. from the ground). I have a few 30 ft. trees just 10 feet away to the left, and a forest full of 40-50 ft. trees a few hundred feet away, surrounding my neighborhood on 3 sides. Our neighborhood is cut into the side of a wetlands forest. Still, I received 14 HD and 18 SD channels, with some coming from as far as 42 miles away, with a small 14"x18" antenna. Height, does help though. At ground level, I either lose or have an unreliable signal from close to half of these 32 channels.   |
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New member Username: D_singhPost Number: 5 Registered: Sep-05 | In most cases if your house is built relatively recently, like within the last 5 years, your off-air antenna should be able to recieve digital signals. I got my HDTV reciever through Dish Network and didn't get the local package and just integrated the local channels to the reciever by plugging the coaxial antenna cable to the reciever and voila, I've got local HDTV. Also, unlike analog channels, digital channels are basically all-or-none, that is you will get the channel or not depending on signal strength. I believe cut-off is around 50-60% signal strength, depending on your locale. Even non-HD broadcasts shown in digital have much better picture. For most, however, an outdoor antenna by Terk should do the trick. |
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Bronze Member Username: ToolmakerProvidence, RI Post Number: 14 Registered: Sep-05 | Yes, unlike analog broadcasts, a stronger digital signal doesn't mean a better picture, you just have to lock onto the signal. My Samsung rates an incoming signal from 0 to 10. Zero is no signal, and 10 is the strongest. Usually, a signal rated just a 2 will lock, and will look just as good as a signal that is rated at 10. Because of this, an antenna rated 10-30 miles analog, may be good for up to 50 miles digital. D Singh... As to the reference of when someones house was built, I don't get it. That is like saying, "If you have a car that is less than 5 years old, you should be able to drive it on the street!" What? My house is 40 years old, and I am getting 32 channels, 14HD and 18SD off the air. My brother has a home less than a year old, and he can't receive anything! Of course, he lives in the sticks, far from any towers! Location is everything! |
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New member Username: D_singhPost Number: 10 Registered: Sep-05 | Bob S. Sorry if I wasn't clear enough. What I meant was, if your house was built relatively recently, your antenna provided by the builders should be able to receive digital broadcasts, thus negating the need for another separate antenna. And yes, location is very important. |
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Bronze Member Username: ToolmakerProvidence, RI Post Number: 17 Registered: Sep-05 | D Singh. Ahhh! Were you refering to a condo or apartment building of some type? Where I live, single family home builders start with a basic home design, and don't include anything extra in their homes. If you want wood or tile floors, that is extra. If you want the rooms wired for TV or phone, that is extra. A FREE antenna... we could only wish!!!  |
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Gold Member Username: Paul_ohstbucksPost Number: 2581 Registered: Jan-05 | Im lucky because all I use is a small indoor Set top antenna and I have no problem receiving all of my local HD channels. I feel bad for those who live out in the 'stixx', because they're going to be left in the cold. |
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Anonymous | i believe a small in door antenna will work. I have one from ATI.com that comes with its PC HDTV Tuner card, it is less than 3 feet long, works great. With a signal strength of 80%, picture looks great, I can capture ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, PBS, KLRU, Spanish channel, pictures look great. I live about 20-30 miles from the towers in Austin, TX. |
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Unregistered guest | I have a 811 receiver, i droped dish network, since i "bought" the 811, is there any way it can be "tuned" to receive OTA signal. |
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Bronze Member Username: D_singhPost Number: 12 Registered: Sep-05 | stuck with 811...you should connect your antenna to the receievr via "antenna in" (making sure your antenna can receive HD content). Go into the menu of the 811 receiver and select Installation then Local Channels (not sure of order but you need to get to Local Channels). Then scan for Digital Channels, and make sure you select the option to display the newly added Digital Channels to your Guide function. I hope this helps. |
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Unregistered guest | Can anyone tell me if the Xium Air Spilateral is worth the price? I live 30 miles from most of the local stations which are all within 3 degrees of each other according to antennaweb. Is it really omni-directional and can I use it in my attic? |
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New member Username: ArazkilamPost Number: 2 Registered: Oct-05 | I just bought a Samsung HL-R5667W today. When I hooked up the tv straight into the cable outlet, I was able to receive one HD channel, PBS. However, I noticed heavy pixelation during scene changes, fading in and out. Is this due to a weak signal or can it be the television? |
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Bronze Member Username: ToolmakerProvidence, RI Post Number: 18 Registered: Sep-05 | Maurice, I don't belive so. The Xium is of a non-standard design, that really doesn't seem to make any sense. It's performance, is no better than other omni-directionals at 1/3 it's price. I use a ($39) DB2, which can be mounted indoor or outdoor, and my reception is great. You can easily mount this antenna in the attic, but you will receive signal loss, based on the thickness and composition of your roofing materials. |
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Bronze Member Username: Nr4pPost Number: 11 Registered: May-05 | Zara, PBS is not a good station to test out HD. PBS runs a number of different Digital signals from city to city. One PBS station in my area has three and the other has five. They split their signals into different subchannels so some are 480i and one channel is 1080i (HD) but they turn off some of the 480i subchannels when they run the 1080i. If you are watching a 480i signal, heavy pixelation is normal. If it's a 1080i and it says HD on viewing program (not the TV, the viewing program) then it should be a 1080i HD signal and pixelation should be rare. BTW, for anyone wondering about a "HD" antenna, there is NO difference between an HD or SD antenna. Antennas capture RF. Period. They don't know the difference between HD, SD, 480i, 720p etc. They just bring the signal to your set which then handles the signal. So, rule of thumb. If you can see the ANALOG channel with your current antenna and little or no snow, chances are you will get the HD channel fine with that same antenna. Now, in some cities, an analog channel is VHF and HD is UHF so that doesn't always apply but its true 90% of the time since analog stations typically run lower power and your TV needs a stronger analog signal to give you a crisp (snow-less) picture. And don't forget to let your TV search for signals after connecting a new antenna so it maps a physical channel to a sub-channel properly. (I.E. Analog 25 in S. Florida transmits Digital channels on UHF 16. But the TV will map it to 25-1 after doing a normal search.). The FCC database or local stations will give you the physical (real) channel since they need two different licenses for analog vs. digital. |
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Maurice Dildeaux Unregistered guest | Mucho thanks, Bob S. You just saved me about a hundred clams. Maurice |
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Unregistered guest | One more ques. for Bob S. please. Some of the guys I work with are using a Free to Air dish, and decoding into HBO,etc. They are so into the decoding, I can't get a straight(short and sweet) answer from them as to what channels I could get legally from one of these dishes. Do you think I would be able to receive anything more than with a VHF/UHF antenna, and do you think what is free and legal now will stay that way for a while. Thanks, Maurice |
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Bronze Member Username: ToolmakerProvidence, RI Post Number: 19 Registered: Sep-05 | Maurice, I am not familiar with these Free to Air dishes or decoders. Years ago, HBO used to be broadcast in this area over a microwave frequency. If you bought the proper antenna, you could receive HBO for free, of which many people did for years, but then they scrambled/encoded the signal. Using a descrambler/decoder to get around this without authorization is illegal. The same thing happened with early satelite dishes. I have a few neighbors with 11-foot diameter dishes sitting in their yards, that they no longer use. To tell you the truth, the 170 channels that cable offers me, is way more than enough, and I don't care for any more. But, HDTV channels are another whole story, as I want all of these channels that I can get. Still, it seems there are only about 20 of these channels available to anyone, anywhere, by any means. Right now, I receive all the HD channels that are broadcast in this area, 14 over the air on my UHF antenna, and another 6 different HD channels offered on cable. Give me another 20 HD channels, and they can have the 170 standard channels back!!! I think there will always be some free and legal programing (paid for by commercials) as long as there are companies that are willing to pay for the programming, to advertise their products. But, expecting to get free and legal commercial-free programming is not going to happen, as someone has to pay the cost. And, if your getting it somehow, you gotta be stealing it! |
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Ron1B1 Unregistered guest | I guess I'm spoiled. I am used to watching analog TV from Lake Charles Louisiana 139.8 Miles away amd Austin Texas 176.8 Miles away from Houston, Texas. I don't find any antennas for HDTV with that range yet .. I have a Radio Shack Vu-210 with an amplifier on it now It's a long range antenna, model vu 210, the best one they made, but they don't make it anymore. Model: VU-190 XR is the only "hdtv" one I see for that long range now at VHF range: 190 miles UHF range: 100 miles |
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Unregistered guest | Here's a bonehead, newbie, wet-behind-the-ears question for you... What are my chances of receiving regular old non-HD (digital and analog) TV with one of the antennas advertised as HD antennas (a DB2 or DB4 from AntennasDirect, for instance)? I've read here that an antenna is an antenna ia an antenna. FYI: I'm in Plattsburgh, NY, about 34 miles from towers in Vermont, about 14 miles from towers in NY. Good sightlines. Two-story house with easy chimney install. Also, these two sets of towers are about 100 degrees apart. PBS is the only HD offering here as of this writing. Antennaweb recommends a large, multi-directional. Can I hope to get any TV OTA, or will have to continue to make do with my Netflix account? K |
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Nanook72 Unregistered guest | If I have a HDTV capable of receiving over the air HD broadcasts, other then a roof antenna, what do i need to achieve this? We're trying to avoid subscribing to DirecTV HD package as it only has locals and 5 other channels right now. And the TV says I can get HD signals now 'without a set top box for free'. So I am guessing there is a way to view HDTV without a cable/Satellite receiver? Thanks in advance for any info you can provide! |
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New member Username: MvanmeterKY USA Post Number: 4 Registered: Jan-06 | Ron1B1 & hollybuzz & Nanook72 Guys, there is no such thing as a HD only antenna. ANY UHF or VHF antenna will receive both analog and HD digital signals. I use two $24 Rat Shack yagis for UHF signals from two different directions - works GREAT - receives analog as well as digital - but the digital signals are MUCH better ! The real problem with over-the-air HD signals is that most broadcasters are using much lower power on their digital signals than their analog signals. Make sense, there are many, many more analog viewers than digital. Nanook72: try an indoor UHF bow-tie or loop antenna - it just might work. I was surprised as h*ll when an old UHF bow-tie I found in a drawer actually brought in the local PBS station (they have the highest HD broadcast power locally). Ultimately, if you confirm your local stations are broadcasting HD signals, then an external mounted antenna (or antennas) will work best. HD needs a certain level, or threshold, of signal strength to even show up on your set. Anything less and the tuner just ignores it. Not like analog where you could see the fuzzies and squiggles of a signal, but not be able to watch it. A good site article: http://www.hdbeat.com/2006/01/30/ota-hd-demystified/ |
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Anonymous | Many thanks for the quick response. So while the D-TV is hooked into the cable in on my set, I'd just run the antenna into the UHF/VHF in and then scan the channels to see what gets picked up? Sounds easy enough! I have an older TREK FM antenna, would that work? Or should i just drop $20 at Rat Shak? |
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New member Username: MvanmeterKY USA Post Number: 7 Registered: Jan-06 | sorry, the Trek FM antenna will not work, wrong frequency coverage. Try a Radio Shack U-75R UHF yagi, $25 plus a 15-1140 matching transformer and 75 ohm cable to fit. You will end up with $40 or $50 in it. The antenna is very directional, you point it directly towards the transmitting antenna site. Use http://antennaweb.org/aw/Address.aspx to get an idea of where the HD broadcasters are in your area. I use two of these antennas, each pointed in different directions and combine the feeds into a single cable. You may get lucky and be able to put the antenna up in the attic and not go through the trouble of mounting it outside your house. All this goes back 25 years or more before cable took over the world and everybody had large external antennas, often with power rotators, to receive distant signals. If those antennas and feed cables are in decent shape they can still be used for Over-the-air HD broadcasts. |
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New member Username: ZbonePost Number: 4 Registered: Jan-06 | I'm hoping someone can help me improve my over-the-air HD signal before the SuperBowl. I have DirecTV, they installed an antenna for local channels. But my reception is spotty for some networks (ABC), non-existent for others (CBS). Antennaweb says I'm about 24-27 miles from the broadcast sources. I'm north of Atlanta, so terrain can be a little hilly. I just tried a small in-line Terk amplifier, thinking it might be a simple, fast solution. It made things worse. I couldn't get ANY signal with the amplifier. ABC was coming in OK without the amp, not at all with the amp. Could the coax cable I'm using be the problem? I connected the DirecTV antenna coax to the Terk, and a short, generic length of coax to connect the Terk to my HD receiver. Or could it be that DirecTV's antenna is low quality? Is there a simple way to improve my signal? If I can avoid climbing high on my roof to install a new antenna, that would be my preference. |
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New member Username: MvanmeterKY USA Post Number: 8 Registered: Jan-06 | if the DirectTV antenna is the type that clips on to the dish, it is very low gain and used for local 5-10 mile signals only. You need a directional UHF antenna pointed at the broadcast tower you want to receive. Read my post just prior to yours. Bring the feed from the UHF antenna directly into your Direct box and connect to the over the air (antenna in) connector, not the satelite in connector. In your existing set up, the Direct local antenna is mixed with the satelite signal and then split back out at the Direct box. your Terk amp will not work in this situation. All this assumes you have a ATSC digital tuner either in your TV or in your DirectTV box. |
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New member Username: ZbonePost Number: 5 Registered: Jan-06 | Thanks, Martin. I am connected to the Antenna-In. I do believe I have a directional antenna. It's not the type that fits over the dish, but a long wing-like unit pointed in the general direction of the signals (South). As I said, I am receiving some channels, but not reliably. I have a feeling that if I could extend the antenna higher, I'd get better reception, but that seems like it would be a difficult solution. So, the easiest solution I can think of is to try to amplify the signal I'm getting. But the $20 Terk in-line amp didn't work. I'll try to find a better amplifier. Maybe your solution of a second antenna and combined feed will work. I'll try an indoor antenna. What are you using to combine the 2 feeds? |
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New member Username: MvanmeterKY USA Post Number: 9 Registered: Jan-06 | unless the amp is the type that mounts right at the antenna (or extremely close), with the power input from inside the house - you won't see much difference. That is also why the over-the-air feed coax needs to be completely separate from the satelite feeds. The DirectTV box actually puts a certain voltage in the coax to power the low noise amplifier mounted at the dish feed point. Anything else mounted in-line will conflict with that. Your initial guess is the best.....get the existing antenna higher in the air, even if it is only a temporary "lash-up" to get you through Sunday. You will be out the cost of some new 75 ohm coax feedline - do not try to use the existing DirectTV lines. Everytime you add a splice or connector or splitter, etc. you lose a considerable amount of signal strength through losses, plus the signal lost in a long coax run. What they don't tell you is that an in-line amplifier is really used to overcome signal loss in all the coax and connections (which can be considerable). |
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New member Username: ZbonePost Number: 7 Registered: Jan-06 | Thanks again, Martin. I'm going to try the second antenna, combined feed approach, because it seems the easiest. Getting 25 feet up a ladder, running new coax, etc. is more trouble than I'm willing to deal with right now. And it sounds like an amplifier isn't going to help, either. |
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Nanook72 Unregistered guest | I just picked up a TERK TV42 with built in amplifier at RS for 29 beans in hopes I could connect to my Sat. dish easier then drilling into our roof or chimney, and get OTA digital signals for our built in HDTV. I was planning on running the ant. signal down via the satellite coax and then using one of the included splitters to run the coax from Satellite to the Sat. Receiver and another coax to the vhf/uhf in on the back of the Sony. Would I do better with a chimney mounted antenna running the wire directly to the back of the TV instead? I'm assuming running 'auto program' will pick these digital signals up? Many thanks. |
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Nanook72 Unregistered guest | I just picked up a TERK TV42 with built in amplifier at RS for 29 beans in hopes I could connect to my Sat. dish easier then drilling into our roof or chimney, and get OTA digital signals for our built in HDTV. I was planning on running the ant. signal down via the satellite coax and then using one of the included splitters to run the coax from Satellite to the Sat. Receiver and another coax to the vhf/uhf in on the back of the Sony. Would I do better with a chimney mounted antenna running the wire directly to the back of the TV instead? I'm assuming running 'auto program' will pick these digital signals up? Many thanks. |
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New member Username: MvanmeterKY USA Post Number: 10 Registered: Jan-06 | I believe your Terk TV42 comes with the proper combiner and splitter boxes and jumper cables to work with your sat. dish. Try that first. Depending on the distance from the TV broadcast tower, this type of "sorta uni-directional" may or may not work well, but it is certainly worth a try. (Hint: keep all your boxes and shipping material to return it if it doesn't work) |
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New member Username: Tld61672Siloam, NC USA Post Number: 1 Registered: Mar-06 | I have Directv DVR (not HD). My Sony HDTV has a tuner. I want to purchase a DB8 multi-directional OTA. Can I connect the DB8 antenna cable to the Directv (non HD) DVR and receive HD broadcast thru my Sony tuner or should I connect directly to the Sony UHF/VHF cable? If I can receive HD thru the Directv DVR (because my HDTV has a tuner) is it then possible to use the DVR to record? Thanks for any response! |
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New member Username: Ramesh5112Skokie, IL USA Post Number: 3 Registered: May-06 | Hi Very knowledgeable persons: I am a very new to this subject. I intend to buy a receiver to get Air To Free channels. Can you please recommend the best in the range of $200.00 and under. I can not do the programming but I can change new key codes. |
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Silver Member Username: Jdsaenz1Post Number: 115 Registered: Jun-04 | There are several out there; some examples: http://www.bizrate.com/satellitereceivers/products__keyword--hd%20receiver.html I hear Hughes makes some good receivers; Samsung also has several models (current and previous models) that work well for what you want to do. I recently found a Samsung ts360 from Craigslist for under $100; it works great for the same need: receiving OTA digital/hd signals from my local networks. Any DirecTV receiver manufactured by Samsung, etc. (except DirecTV's own) will work for receiving OTA hd with an antenna, I believe. No subscription required. |
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